March 26, 2022
Vintage Herbert Fritz Knopf (Geyer Style) Double French Horn with Case, Mpc
Silver and Brass Music Shop is a brick-and-mortar brass instrument restoration and repair shop located in Carson City, NV. This is a vintage Knopf double french horn, made in Germany. The wrap style of this horn is commonly referred to as a “Geyer Wrap”, although you will sometimes hear it referred to as a “Geyer-Knopf Wrap”. This is because both Geyer and Knopf independently developed and designed this wrap at around the same time. The two styles of wrap are very similar and have many of the same advantages. The main difference between the two designs is that the Knopf horns have much larger bell throats, while Geyer horns have medium to small bell throats. This particular horn has 5 valves, and the 5th valve is a “stop valve”. This valve enables the player to play fully stopped notes without the need to transpose and use different fingerings. This instrument is in very good condition for its age, and plays well. The valves move very well and the slides all move of course. As for the aesthetic condition of the instrument, there are a few small dings and pings throughout the horn. The horn has been nickel-plated at some point in its history, and this nickel plating is very thin and worn through over a large portion of the horn. In very typical German fashion, this horn has been fitted with a number of guards which were put on the horn before the horn was nickel plated; they are on the main tuning slide and on the bell tail and leadpipe (near the hand guard). I don’t know if there is any damage beneath these guards or if they were installed to prevent the brass from being worn too thin in these areas. There are also some scars on the bell throat from dent removal. The bell engraving reads: Herbert/ Fritz/ KNOPF/ Markneukirchen, Sa. The minor flaws are visible in the pictures, and none of them affect the playability of the horn. This instrument has been professionally cleaned in our shop, and repaired to full playability. This instrument comes with its original worn hardshell case, and a mouthpiece for play-testing purposes. How the horn plays. Full, dark sound with a warm, mellow tone. The horn is open and plays with good flexibility and accuracy. All registers of the horn speak well and play evenly, with a full, sonorous low register and a smooth high register. The F and Bb side timbres match well, and the intonation matches well once the horn is properly intonated i. The slides are pulled out the correct amount. All horns are located at Silver & Brass Music Shop. This item is in the category “Musical Instruments & Gear\Brass\French Horns”. The seller is “silver_brass_music” and is located in this country: US. This item can be shipped to United States, Canada.
- Key: F/Bb
- Country/Region of Manufacture: Germany
- Bell Material: Brass
- Instrument: French Horn
- Type: Double Horns, French Horns, Double
- Color: Silver
- Finish: Plated
- Finish Material: Nickel
- Model: 5-Valve
- Brand: Knopf
- Set Includes: Case, Mouthpiece